craft jewellery from Northumberland

winter berries

It’s been a really good year for seeds and berries, something to do with the wet spring and hot summer apparently. We certainly got a bumper crop of blackberries and elderberries, which we are now enjoying as jam.

I’m not sure what this shrub is, but we have a large expanse of it screening our border at one side of the house. I think it’s a garden plant rather than a native. Do leave a comment if you recognise it!

Anyway, it’s covered in bright red berries at the moment, and it’s a magnet for every bird in the area, especially over the past few days of sub-zero temperatures. We’ve seen thrushes, blackbirds, robins, chaffinches and bullfinches.

Inspired by their dramatic colours and shapes, I’ve tried to recreate the dark glossy leaves and shiny berries of the shrub with these earrings.

oxidised silver winter berry earrings €24.50

I’ve tinkered with the shape of the leaves a bit, so that they’re rounder and curvier. The leaves are oxidised, then rubbed back slightly, so that the veins remain darker and stand out. A little bunch of red crystal ‘berries’ hangs beneath each leaf. They’ve turned out pretty well, I think. They are available in my Etsy shop now, and they’d look great with a dark top for the party season.